As I Lay Dying
by rata2
Summary: Sometimes you choose your own destiny. And sometimes your destiny is chosen for you. The choice is your's: submit to it or fight it. And just sometimes in self-sacrifice you can indeed change the haunting past.
1. With My Dying Breath

**(Warning I do not own the copy writes to Star WARS. They belong to Disney. Anyway I am not making any money from this story.)**

* * *

><p><strong>(Author Note: Okay I intend this story to be a fun little story, but it is important to remember that this is fiction. It is a not real. In fact the Bible says, <em>"It is appointed unto men ONCE to die, but after this the judgment."<em> (King James Version)**

* * *

><p>I was exhausted. Beyond exhausted. Not only was I tired from the struggle to keep in the light side of the force but I was tired from being electrocuted. Electrocution tend to hurt.<p>

Now as I slumped on the deck, I could sense my father's life signature in the force go. And I...and I was to tired. The force let out a shirk of alarm as the rebels successfully bombed the second death star.

"Force," I wished, "please just let me have a chance to make it all right..."

The light faded from my eyes as I felt myself passing away.


	2. Mesopotamia

Chapter 2: Mesopotamia

It's a pure white that greets my eyes when I open them next time. I look down at myself only to see myself dressed like I had been during the time I had finished rescuing Leia and Han with Lando and Chewie's help. I smiled. Leia and I had really worked well...

"Hello, there," said a grave older voice.

"What? I mean, who are you?" I demanded as I wheeled around to see an older man. Then man was dressed very similarly to Ben. His gray shoulder length was tied back with a thin leather string. But what caught my attention was his eyes. They were so kind and yet they looked like they could see right through your spirit.

"I am Qui-gon Jinn," replied the man looked at me very carefully. "And you are?"

"Luke," I answered. "Luke Skywalker."

Qui-gon nodded.

"So this is death?" I asked because I had really wanted to see Ben and Yoda.

"No," replied Qui-gon.

"No?" I asked.

"This is Mesopotamia. The land between the two rivers."

"Uh," I said.

"You are special," said Qui-gon. You gave your life to do the impossible. Because of that the force has granted you the power to free all the captives in this land."

"Captives?" I asked.

"When we all died there was something that we need to have finished. Because we didn't, we are doomed to stay on this side of the land because of it.

"I don't get it," I said. I had wanted to rest. I didn't want to fight another war!

"Look," said Qui-gon. He turned around and pointed at a dark forest-green river. "That river is humanity. People living." He turned a one-eighty degrees and pointed at a river that was black one one side and bright white on the other side. "That is the force. The people who were good get to go to the white side of the river and the bad people are rewarded with the black side."

I nodded.

"So, I am here because I have not been able to complete my mission that I was suppose to."

"I'm confused," I responded. "What do you want me to do?"

"You have the power to change the past. Turn back time to when you father's soul was in the balance. Give him the tools to survive the fight against the dark side."

"And how am I to do that?" I demanded.

"Just clear your mind and think of nothing but your wish to turn time back," said Qui-gon as he started to fade away.


	3. Force Ghost

Chapter 3

Force Ghost

The room is almost blindingly bight white. In the center of the room is a hospital bed. Several doctors are hurriedly working and yelling at each other.

"We're losing her," shouts a doctor.

"Ani," cries the woman laying on the bed. She reaches out her hands toward where he is standing. "Ani, save me," she cries.

He starts to run toward her but he cannot reach her.

"We're losing her," shout another doctor.

The heart monitor lets out a shrill scream.

He bolted awake. Sweat dripping down his chest.

"Ani?" murmured a soft voice from beside him.

"It's nothing, love," he said. "Just a bad dream. I'm going to go meditate on it." He shoved the blankets aside and got out of bed. "just go back to sleep," he added as he left the room.

The force seemed strange in the living room. Almost as if something is logged in there that should not be. A quick glance around the room revealed a young man standing near a window.

"Who are you?" demanded Anakin as his hand going toward his lightsaber.

"Don't you recognize a force ghost when you see one?" teased the young man as he turned from the window. "Really," said the young man as he saw Ani's hand on his lightsaber. He let out a boyish grin as he brushed his a rather long lock of hair out of his eye.

"Most force ghosts are blueish. You're not..."

"Luke."

"What?"

"Luke, that's my name."

"So what do you want? Maybe Master Yoda could..."

"Have you ever heard the tale of how the Locus Lands were formed?" interrupted Luke.

"So what, you make it a regular thing to break into peoples' homes and tell them bedtime stories?"

"No, I just do it to people who can't sleep at night," shot back Luke. "Now would you like to hear the story?"

"Fine," snapped Ani, "If you promise to leave after you are done. I don't want you disturbing Padme."

Luke smiled and then sat down and began to tell the story.

* * *

><p>"Once upon there was a king that took his daughter, Lola to a foreseer who could tell the future. The foreseer told King Low that his daughter would have a son that would end his life. Upon hearing those words, King Low was terrified. He ordered his daughter to be locked up in an old abandoned tower where she was to be starved to death. However the the chief god, Zeus, looked down and saw young Lola. He took the form of the sandstorm so he could slip in with her. Once there he transformed and ... well things happened.<p>

Fast forward a whole year. King Low ordered that the tower be unbarred. He had hopped that his daughter was dead. Instead he was greeted by a healthy daughter and grandson. Enraged, King Low order Lola and Perseus to be placed into a wooden coffin with large holes cut into it. The coffin was then taken out into the sea and left there. Zeus, when he saw what was happening ordered his brother, Poseidon, to support that coffin. So Poseidon, the god of the sea and water, bore that coffin up all the way to the land Crete. A young fisherman found the coffin and upon opening it, found Lola and Perseus. He took them in and took good care of them.

But as all good things go, all good things must end. So the young man, Jerry, passed away. Then the King of the land of Crete, as he was passing through, saw Lola. Now he just loved to marry new wives and so he ordered Lola to prepare to become his new wife. Perseus was to be killed.

Perseus, however, escaped from the hands the kings mercenaries. He then decided, when he found out about the king's intentions, to end that king's treachery once and for all. He went to the river of Taza. There he found the three gray sisters. Although he had no gold, he managed to get them to give him both weapons and advice. All he did was keep the one eye that all three sisters used hidden from them.

After many hard days, Perseus claimed his treasure, the head of the accursed Medusa. As he walked back home, it is rumored that poisonous snakes sprang up from every drop of Medusa's blood. Those snakes then went out on the hunt to kill every human being. Even the child in the cradle was not safe. Breaking in the doors of the royal house, Perseus ordered his mother to close her eyes. Everyone one else looked at him, including King Low.

And here is the real tragedy, you see Medusa had been created by Athena, goddess of War. When she created her, she never wanted Medusa to die. So she placed a curse that said that if anyone killed Medusa they would unleash all of her power. Anyone, anywhere within a fifty yard radius of her head, would be turned to stone even if they did not look at her. The only reason Perseus was alive was because he was half-god.

So it was to his great horror that he saw his mother, who had closed her eyes, turn to stone. Everyone in the room was stone. Terrified, Perseus ran house to house trying to undo his wrong and turning everyone into stone. Finally, Zeus, took pity on him and removed Perseus' memory and turned him into an vulture. But the damage was done. The End*."

* * *

><p>Ani nodded as he stood up a took a shaky breath. "So what is the moral of the story?" he asked.<p>

"Mediate on it. All secrets are easy to understand. The point is to discover them.**"

"Now I must go..."

"But I still have questions..."

"I promised," said Luke. "I can't go back on it."

(Author Notes: *This is my darker version of the story of Perseus and Medusa. **This is either an actually quote or paraphrase of a quote by Galileo. And finally bonus points for anyone who figures out what the story represents. LOL)


	4. Turning Wrong Light Bulbs On

Chapter 4

Turning Wrong Light Bulbs On*

"Master," said Anakin the very next day after having been visited by the force ghost of Luke, "have you ever heard of a knight or master named Luke?"

"No," replied Obi-wan puzzled. "Why do you ask?"

"Well last night I was visited by a force ghost and he told me that his name was Luke."

"A force ghost?" asked Obi-wan very surprised.

"Yeah?"

"What did he look like?" demanded Obi-wan.

"Um," Anakin paused, "Uh, he was short. Like he reached my should in height and the had really short bleached blonde hair that was cut rather short. He was wearing all black and he really looked..."

"Looked what?"

"Tired. Like he had seen too much suffering. Why, what is so important about him?"

"You know that it takes a special person to be able to cross from the land of the dead to the land of the living."

"I thought that everyone that had unfinished business stayed here in this plane?"

"No. They go to a land in-between. Sort of a limbo. There it is claimed that they wait in darkness until a watcher finds them or they find a watcher."

"A watcher?"

"A watcher. Not much is know about them. The last known and confirmed case was when I just fifty standard years old turned," interrupted Master Yoda.

"Master Yoda," said Anakin and Obi-wan at the same time.

"Say what wanted he?" asked Yoda.

"No. Uh, he told me a story. The story about how the Lotus Lands have been formed," responded Anakin.

"Come to my rooms shall you," said Yoda. "Tell us the story, hmm."

"Yes, Master Yoda," said Anakin. As he walked along into Master Yoda's rooms he told them whole long,sour and bitter tale."

"Meditated on it have you?" asked Master Yoda.

"No."

"Then meditate on it you shall," ordered Yoda.

"Yes, Master," said Anakin.

Later that night Anakin woke up again, that same dream haunting him. Sighing he slipped out of his bed to grab a glass of water. He knew that he must find a way to save his wife even if he turned to the dark side...

**(* In my Chemistry class the teacher was like oh I see someone's light bulb is going on. Then she gave the wrong answer and the teacher said, "Wrong light bulb went on.")**


	5. So Others May Live

Chapter 5

"Help me," cried out Chancellor Palpatine aka Darth Sidious. "I can save your wife," he promised.

Anakin paused as he looked back and forth between Mace and Sidious.

"Please," cried out Sidious as he began to look like he was fading away right in front of his eyes.

"No," said Anakin.

"What!" snarled Sidious all remainders of the elderly man near the grave now gone. "How dare you challenge me. I am the only one who can save her."

"While that my be true, I will not turn this galaxy in the Lotus Lands, Medusa," said Anakin as he lit his lightsaber.

Enraged, Sidious lunged forward only to be stopped by Mace's lightsaber that was now logged in his heart.

"So wife?" said Mace as he checked to make sure that Sidious was dead.

"Look, I know that you will probably want to kick me out of the order for not abiding by its wishes..."

"You knew that that is against the order's code ..." interrupted Mace standing up and turning to face Anakin.

"Then maybe it is time to change the order's code," came a quiet voice from the doorway of the room.

Anakin wheeled around to see Luke standing there, smiling.

"And you are?" demanded Mace.

"I am Watcher Luke..." he paused. "Watcher Luke Skywalker..."

"No," whispered Anakin.

"I have found that attachments can be dangerous. Yes, they can cause us to fall but sometimes attachments can also anchor us to the light side of the force. What about the master-student relationship, Mace? Is that not a form of attachment?"

"We try to discourage it," replied Mace.

Luke raise an eyebrow. "Can you live not breathing?"

"Of course not," shot back Mace frowning.

"Then you can not stop attachments from forming. Do you wanted to hear a story?"

"Yes," said Anakin at the same time Mace said, "No."

"Please," said Anakin. "I now know why you tell stories. You cannot warn directly."

"That is correct," smiled Luke as he walked into the room to stand near a window. "Many, many years ago there was an order formed. At first they genuinely wanted to serve their god, but then things happened. For one their priests and nuns were ordered to never marry. But that did not stop the priests and nuns from having sexual intercourse. In fact when one of their popes, sorta Grandmaster in your order's terms, ordered a lake near one of the houses of nuns to be drained they found over six hundred baby skulls. As if that was not a bad crime the priests turned and committed a crime ten times worse then this. They started to have non-consensual sexual relationships with the young boys under their control."

"I don't follow," said Mace.

"Meditate on it," smiled Luke. He lifted his head and said, "It's my time to go. I must head back. Oh and Anakin, Qui-gon wants me to tell you that he is even more proud of you then the time that you blew up the control ship, even though he told you to stay put. You'll be a great diplomat. You are able to twist words into very nifty ways"

Luke looked up to the door frame. "Obi-wan, Qui-gon wants you to know that he never meant to replace you with Anakin. He has always been proud at how strong you have been over the years."

With that Luke faded back into his new home, Mesopotamia. "It is finished," he said to Qui-gon. "What do you see?"

"A bright light," whispered Qui-gon.

"Then go into it," encouraged Luke. He stood there watching Qui-gon walked straight into the bright light until he disappeared.

"Excuse me," said a young woman's voice.

"Yes," said Luke.

"You are a watcher?"

"Yes."

"I need you to leave a message for my brother-in-law..."

~~~Luke's voice fades outs: "The watcher motto for many years has been 'so the others may live.'"*~~~

**(Author Notes: "So that others may live," is actually the Coast Guard motto. And please don't forget to review. It is my desert for all this work. LOL Also feel free to correct any grammar mistakes. I'm running as self-bata so there are down sides. LOL.)**


End file.
